Room of the Vanishing Floor, Dry Cave: UTEP Locs. 26, 27

NM: Eddy Co.

Age. A 14C date of 33,590 ± 1500 (TX-1773) was
obtained on bone carbonates. This likely is a minimum date and it's estimated that the fauna
may be either Early Wisconsin or Early/Mid Wisconsin.

General Description. A large chamber deep within Dry Cave. The name comes from a large,
soft cone of bat guano that failed to support the weight of a person. The fossil material comes
from fill spilling from a chimney on the north side of the chamber (UTEP 26). Material retrieved
from the same chimney, but on the side opposite to the large chamber was originally designated as
"Above Room of the Vanishing Floor" (UTEP 27); however, the time differential seems
minimal and the two areas are treated here as one site.

Discussion. Although treated as one site now, some earlier publications distinguished
between them. The numbering system in the database has been maintained so that the different
portions of the site can be distinguished.

This is the type locality of Aztlanolagus agilis Russell and Harris 1986.

Harris (1993c) reported the possible occurrence of Brea strix; with additional material,
this has turned out to be Bubo virginianus, and the former taxon is removed from the site
list. Likewise, the identification of Corvus corax and the very tentative identification
(Harris 1993c) of Vulpes velox is withdrawn. Re-examination of the single, tentatively
identified S. audubonii specimen suggests that S. audubonii is not represented;
furthermore, the cottontails earlier identified as S. nuttallii seem more likely to
represent S. floridanus.